The Ghost Town That Wasn’t

We were in San Miguel de Allende, enjoying all the classic traits of a pretty Mexican town  – a gorgeous church dominating the skyline on the main plaza, colonial architecture with carved wooden doors and wrought-iron balconies, winding cobblestone streets, and quaint local markets where indigenous women sold traditional crafts. […]

From Tulum Trauma to San Miguel Magic

Our flight to Monterrey got cancelled again.  The first time, a year ago, we rebooked it for Mexico City, but this time airfare to León was cheap enough to make us consider going there… again. We had already taken the same flight a few years earlier and spent three wonderful […]

Mexican Chicago

Back in 2003, when I’d just arrived in Chicago, my first apartment was in Hermosa on the city’s northwest side. One evening, when I was in the back porch relaxing after a day of work, the street was suddenly filled with the sound of the revving engines. Motorcycles and cars […]

Go For Gözleme

The previous post about fish, bread, and never giving up on food dreams reminded me of something that happened two years ago, during a road trip from Izmir to Antalya in Türkiye. We left our Airbnb early in the morning, eager to start a long day of sightseeing, and skipped […]

Searching for Fish and Bread in Istanbul

Two years ago, when we did a road trip through southwest Türkiye, I kept looking for balık ekmek.  If you don’t know what that is, don’t worry.  Neither did I.  But Victor kept mentioning how he and his parents enjoyed a delicious balık ekmek in a restaurant by the Bosphorus […]

The Cotton Castle in Türkiye

By Julia / December 13, 2023

The first time I saw a picture of Pamukkale, I had no idea what I was looking at. Was it snow? Super white sand? White marble? Salt deposits? Was this natural or man-made?  These questions were not answered until we physically got to Pamukkale, mostly because Victor insisted that I […]

The Lycian Way: The Guide for the Unprepared.

By Victor / December 6, 2023

In moments of blissful daydreaming, I often imagine what I would do if I had unlimited time and was in better physical shape.   One thing that immediately pops into my mind is embarking on a long-distance hike.  Wouldn’t it be great to walk the entire length of the Appalachian Trail […]

BRAAAAINS! It’s Not Just a Zombie Snack!

By Julia / November 23, 2023

After snacking on sütlaç, Turkish coffee, and one bite of boyoz, while wandering around Kemeralti Market in Izmir, it was finally time for lunch.  After a whole morning of delicious smells coming from various food carts and small cafes, Victor and I already had our preferred meals picked out. While […]

Izmir Food Special

By Julia / November 16, 2023

When Victor visited Istanbul last year with his parents, he was so impressed with Turkish markets that he later wrote three blog posts on this topic (post #1, post #2, post #3). So obviously, while visiting Türkiye this year, we couldn’t skip Kemeralti Market in Izmir, one of the oldest […]

Leblebi, Leblebi Everywhere

By Julia / November 9, 2023

In the evening of Day 6 in Türkiye, we were driving from Pamukkale down to Fethiye, after having spent the whole day exploring what Turkish people consider to be the 8th Wonder of the World.  There’ll be a separate post about that later with some of the most surreal photographs […]

Getting Clean in Türkiye

By Victor / November 2, 2023

My motionless body lies inside the octagon.  I’m on my back, in a state of total disorientation, hardly registering what is going on around me.  I feel neither my legs nor arms, and can barely hear any sounds.  My eyes are closed, and when I squint them open, all I […]

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